The price of being close to the President is delivering bad news. You fail him if you don’t tell him the truth. Others won’t do it.
DONALD RUMSFELDWhat you measure improves.” A corollary rule in the military is that “You get what you inspect, not what you expect.
More Donald Rumsfeld Quotes
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You go to war with the army you have, not the army you might want or wish to have at a later time.
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If you try to please everybody, somebody’s not going to like it.
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It isn’t making mistakes that’s critical; it’s correcting them and getting on with the principal task.
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Enjoy your time in public service. It may well be one of the most interesting and challenging times of your life.
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If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.
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Learn to say ‘I don’t know.’ If used when appropriate, it will be often.
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Agreement can always be reached by increasing the generality of the conclusion; when this is done, the form is generally preserved but only the illusion of policy is created.
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If in doubt, don’t. If still in doubt, do what’s right.
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Prune – prune businesses, products, activities, people. Do it annually.
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Those who made the decisions with imperfect knowledge will be judged in hindsight by those with considerably more information at their disposal and time for reflection.
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Know that the amount of criticism you receive may correlate somewhat to the amount of publicity you receive.
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Test ideas in the marketplace. You learn from hearing a range of perspectives. Consultation helps engender the support decisions need to be successfully implemented.
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Your performance depends on your people. Select the best, train them and back them. When errors occur, give sharper guidance. If errors persist or if the fit feels wrong, help them move on. The country cannot afford amateur hour in the White House.
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Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.
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Think ahead. Don’t let day-to-day operations drive out planning.
DONALD RUMSFELD